About Us

The JustBats.com Story

In 1985, there was a glaring need for a sporting goods store that valued the importance of customer service. In 1986, Wes and Judy Hedrick opened Pro Athlete, Inc. This was a small sporting goods store specializing in team jerseys and letter jacket embroidery and focused on one thing, customer service.

By 1997, Pro Athlete had seen 14 sporting goods stores come and go in the Kansas City area. They were the largest supplier of baseball equipment in North Kansas City. Both Wes and Judy, and their son, Scott Hedrick, saw the need for expansion but none could come up with a profitable model for road sales until late one night Scott had a brilliant idea. Put it on the internet, that way there would be a store location in every home with an internet connection.

For a year they researched, and to their amazement there wasn’t a company out there that offered good customer service, enticing web page layouts, or unbeatable prices. After getting some help from Mike and Brian Kearns, the first web-site, beapro.com, went live on December 1, 1999. The first order did not come through until December 11, 1999.

The domain name JustBats.com was bought shortly after the first site went live, and Just Bats was born. As sales continued to grow, the original 2,400 square foot building kept shrinking. A 10,000 square foot building across the street was purchased, but within 2 years it wasn’t enough to hold the inventory needed to successfully run a growing business. In February of 2006 a 23,000 square foot building near KCI airport was purchased and is the current home of JustBats.com. In 2011, we completed the construction of an addition brining the size of our current building to just over 50,000 square feet.

At JustBats.com we strive to perfect the process of bat selection and to perfect your game from click to swing. From the thrill of stepping up to the plate with your new bat to the joy you get from watching your kid running the bases after smacking one; baseball and softball is what we do. Our friendly staff, with experience ranging from Tee Ball through the professional ranks, knows what it takes to get you the right bat. Our idea is simple; get the perfect bat for you on time, every time, exactly as promised.

Our Customers:
It’s very simple; the customer is why we are here; you are why we are here. Every time, at every interaction with the customer, it is our promise to provide a trusted and fun experience. You can rely on us to provide the product and service you expect, require, and deserve to improve your game.

Our Employees:
We seek to be a leader in employee job satisfaction and we try to create one of the best work environments in the country. JustBats.com strives to help each employee get what they want from life. Family will always come first at JustBats.com and donating time, talent, and treasure is a must for all employees.

Our Facilities:
The centrally located building location was chosen specifically to quickly deliver products to our customers on time, every time, exactly as promised. The facility also has a baseball and softball batting cage for the testing of bats and employee batting practice.